Adrenaline Rush
by ShutUpAndPaddle
Summary: Horatio's fiancé, Zoe seems to have disappeared but when he finds her, he soon realises that she was not apart of the original plan and that someone eles's life hangs in the balance instead, she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Is her keen eye for detail able to save the victim? Horatio learns something more about her that perhaps isn't a desired personality trait.
1. Chapter 1

**Adrenaline Rush**

**Chapter 1**

Zoë watched Horatio stand and walk out of the room as he answered his ringing phone. '_Another work call, can they not leave him alone?'_ She questioned herself as she heard him walk into the study and flick the laptop on. She glanced up at the clock and realised it was 7pm. '_I haven't even done the shopping yet, shit.'_ She thought to herself as she got up and picked their empty glasses up. She walked into the kitchen and put them into the dishwasher before strolling into the study.

"I'll see you later, I've got to go shopping." She mouthed to him and he held his hand up.

"Excuse me one moment." Horatio said on the phone.

"2 minutes, I'll come along." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded at him and gave him a smile. He flashed her a smile back and then began talking again. She strolled out and wiped the sides down in the kitchen and then quickly put a load of washing on while she waited for Horatio to finish on the phone. She walked back into the study 5 minutes later and placed her hand on her hip with a raised eyebrow.

"One moment please." Horatio said softly on the phone and then pulled the phone from his ear.

"I'm sorry beautiful, it doesn't look like this is going to resolve itself anytime soon." Horatio said softly.

"That's okay, I'll see you a little later, don't work too hard." She said softly.

"I won't, see you later." Horatio said with a smile. She smiled back at him and then leant down and kissed him. She backed off and then walked out as he swivelled on the chair to watch her walk out as he brought the phone back up to his ear and began talking again. He turned back around as she disappeared and then began tapping at the keyboard.

He heard the front door open then close and got back to work.

An hour and a half passed and Horatio realised that Zoë hadn't come back. He sat back in the chair and picked up his phone and dialled for Zoë. '_She's usually back long before now…'_ Horatio thought to himself when he heard her phone ringing. There was no answer. '_Perhaps she's at the checkout now, or didn't hear her phone.'_ Horatio thought to himself. He got back to work and half an hour flew past. Horatio glanced down at his watch and took a deep breath. '_Where is she?' _ Horatio questioned himself as he picked up his phone again and dialled for her. He patiently listened to it ring before he was put through to voicemail. He immediately stood and pulled the laptop screen down to close the lid and walked out of the study. '_Is she okay? What if she's hurt? What if she crashed? She could have blacked out at the wheel and crashed? What if the pacemaker stopped working? She always answers her phone, where is she? She can't still be shopping, can she?'_ Horatio thought to himself, becoming more and more worried. He pulled his shoes on and then his jacket and finally picked up his keys and left the house. He jumped into his car and frantically started the engine and pulled off the drive. '_I should have gone with her, I should have put the phone down and left with her.'_ Horatio thought to himself as he weaved through the light traffic, towards the local supermarket.

He pulled into the car park and drove to the entrance and immediately saw her car parked in one of the bays.

'_She is still here, what on Earth is she doing?'_ Horatio thought to himself as he pulled into one of the bays himself. He got out of the car and walked into the shop and walked around, but couldn't see her anywhere. He walked back out and over to her car when something caught his eye on the boot.

'_That wasn't there earlier…'_ He thought to himself as he studied a large scratch in the black paint. He stood up straight and looked in and saw the shopping bags all in the back. He lowered his eyebrows and looked back down at the scratch, he then saw something glistening just under the car. He crouched down and realised it was her keys. His heart began to pound as he picked them up. '_What happened?' _ He questioned himself and then opened the boot and looked at the shopping. He placed his hand on his hip and with the other picked up a tub of ice cream. '_It's virtually melted, she must've been gone sometime, where is she? Is she okay?'_ Horatio questioned, becoming more panicked. He put the ice cream back and pulled out his phone as he closed the boot. He dialled for Zoë and then heard her phone going off. His heart began to pound more so as he crouched down again and looked under the car and saw her phone vibrating and lighting up by the tyre. He reached under and picked it up and ended the call.

'_What? Where is she? Has she been taken to hospital? Has she been taken by someone else? It's broad daylight, someone must have seen something if she was taken. They wouldn't have stood by and watched her being taken, surely? I should have come with her!'_ Horatio thought to himself. He dialled for Ryan.

"Mr Wolfe, have you heard anything from Zoë in the past couple of hours?" Horatio questioned immediately.

"Erm, she said she was off shopping with you about two hours ago, why? Is everything okay?" Ryan questioned.

"I didn't go as something popped up about work and now I'm at the supermarket as she hadn't come back and I've just found her phone and keys under her car with a large scratch in the paintwork." Horatio exhaled as he rubbed his face. Horatio heard Ryan take a deep breath and knew Ryan had begun to have the same thoughts as him.

"I'm on my way over." Ryan said as he hung up and immediately walked over to his car and drove to the supermarket where Zoë shops.

Horatio looked down at his phone and then something else caught his eye, there were a few blood drops on the floor, the other side of the boot. He crouched down and looked at them. He tensed and then stood up and walked around to the front of the car and opened the drivers' door and checked the car out. He couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. '_She must have been taken, they must've taken her before she got in.'_ Horatio thought and then began to really panic. He quickly checked through her handbag as it sat on the front drivers' seat, but nothing was out of the ordinary. He closed the door and ran both hands through his hair. Horatio watched a car pull up and park up. He watched Eric get out. '_Eric?'_ He thought to himself and then watched Eric walk towards him.

"Hey H, Wolfe rang me and told me what had happened. Have you found anything so far?" Eric questioned.

"No, nothing, there's some blood drops there and the scratch, but there is nothing else." Horatio exhaled, clearly distressed.

"Okay H, don't worry. This could all be some mistake, she may have just gone to pick something up from somewhere else." Eric said, hopeful.

"Her phone and keys were under the car, she wouldn't go anywhere without her phone. Her handbag is in the front too." Horatio said quietly as he looked at her phone in his hand.

"Okay, well maybe this blood isn't hers." Eric said as he got up and glanced over at the entrance to see Ryan pulling in.

"Don't worry H, we'll find her. We'll get the night CSI's in." Eric said softly and Horatio nodded as he put her phone and keys in his pocket and Eric walked over to his car and notified the CSI's while Ryan had hopped out of his car and briskly walked over to Horatio.

"Any sign of her?" Ryan asked immediately.

"No, there's some blood on the floor but that's it." Horatio shook his head.

"Perhaps she fell and was taken to hospital?" Ryan questioned, he didn't want to think that she'd been taken by someone.

"I'll call the hospital." Horatio said as he pulled his phone out and rang the hospital while Ryan looked around the car.

"She's not been admitted to the hospital." Horatio said as he put his phone away. Apart of them hoped she had been taken to hospital, but only because they didn't want to face the reality that she'd been taken by someone. Eric walked back over to them.

"Night shift are on their way over now." He said softly.

"It's going to be fine, we'll find her." Eric assured Horatio who was worried sick. All 3 hung around until night shift had finished.

"We'll ring you with the details, Lieutenant Caine. You should go home just in case she returns. We'll find Zoë." One of the CSI's assured him. Horatio nodded as he looked down and then walked over to his car.

"Do you want me to come back with you, H?" Eric questioned as he walked over to him as he beeped his car unlocked.

"I'm good." Horatio said softly.

"Okay, well Wolfe and I are going to go out and look for her, we'll give you a call if we find her and call us if she returns home. This could just be a mis-understanding." Eric said softly.

"Thank you, Eric." Horatio said appreciatively. Eric gave him a nod and let him get into his car and walked away and over to Ryan and began talking to him. Horatio drove away and back home with his mind going crazy. Eric and Ryan jumped into their cars and drove in opposite directions. Horatio got home and began pacing as he ran his hands through his hair.

'_What happened? Who has her? Why?'_ Horatio questioned himself, over and over. He pulled his phone out and rang Eric, getting an update. Eric told him that neither he nor Ryan had found her yet and Horatio hung up as he continued to pace. 2 and a half hours later Horatio's phone rang and he saw the number for the lab and he immediately answered.

"Have you found her?" Horatio asked immediately.

"Sorry, Lieutenant, we haven't found her but we have the DNA results for the blood that was found. It isn't a match to Zoë, it's an unknown male, he's not in our database. Don't worry, we're doing everything we can to find her." A soft female voice said softly and Horatio pinched the bridge of his nose as he exhaled.

"Okay thank you, keep me updated." Horatio said as he dropped his hand to his side.

"Will do." The soft voice said and Horatio hung up. He placed his phone on the side and rubbed his face as he shook his head, refusing to believe that anything had happened to her. '_This can't have happened, this couldn't have happened!" _He thought to himself.'_Perhaps she fought back, which is where the blood is from? It has to be the only explanation for the blood. But if the blood isn't in the database, then this must be a new criminal? What would they want with Zoë?'_ He thought to himself and shook his head as he walked around the sink and picked out a glass and had a glass of water. Horatio decided that he couldn't stay at home and picked up his keys and went out in the car, just hoping she'd escaped the clutches of whoever had her. He drove around, regularly keeping in contact with both Ryan and Eric. Eric went home at 1am as he was exhausted, Ryan and Horatio stayed on the phone to each other while they searched everywhere.

"H, I can't keep this up all night. Perhaps we should leave it until tomorrow morning? The lab is on it too, we will find her." Ryan said softly and he heard Horatio exhale. He also felt exhausted. He looked at the digital clock just as it struck 3am.

"Okay Mr Wolfe, thank you, I will see you tomorrow." Horatio said softly.

"Not a problem, H." Ryan said softly and they hung up. Ryan returned to his house while Horatio stayed out for another 30 minutes until he found himself nearly falling asleep at the wheel. He decided it would be best if he returned home. He parked up on the drive and got in. He slumped on the sofa looking down at his phone, hoping the lab would call him to say that Zoë is safe and had been found.

6.30am soon came around, Zoë opened her eyes and everything looked blurry and fuzzy. She tried to move her hands but she couldn't move. She felt her wrists bound behind her back as she laid on her side. She moved her legs but soon realised that her ankles and knees were bound too. She looked around but couldn't make out her surroundings as her vision was so blurred.

"Horatio?" She called out weakly, still feeling weak and sleepy. She took a deep breath and recognised the aroma of her surroundings but couldn't put her finger on it.

Horatio had just woke up when the alarm upstairs disturbed his nightmare-ridden sleep. He sat up and looked down at his watch and realised that it was 6.30, he jumped up and ran upstairs and hit the button on the alarm which had been going off for about an hour but hadn't disturbed him. He jumped into the shower and pulled on another suit and went downstairs as he checked his phone.

'_Where is she? Is she okay? Is she even alive?_' He thought to himself and then shook his head.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Zoë took a few deep breaths and moved a little, she felt the cold floor against her cheek and studied the white tiles beneath her. She repeatedly blinked to clear the fuzziness as her heart began to pound. She looked around again and she suddenly realised where she was. Tears began to collect in her eyes as she looked up at Horatio's kitchen.

"Horatio!?" She yelled out.

"Horatio?!" She yelled again, louder but didn't hear any response. She moved as she tried to focus on something else other than the time she was taken from that kitchen and Maya being taken from her. She moved and tried to shuffle her way through to the hall where the home phone sat upon the table. She reached the table 5 minutes later and looked up at it and then began to try to get to her knees but her ankles and knees were bound too tightly to allow any movement at all. She turned around onto her other side and looked at the plug in the wall that was connected to the charger that the phone headset rested in. She shuffled closer to the wall and gripped the wire with her teeth and began to pull on the wire. She managed to pull it off the table and the headset fell to the floor. She turned and moved over to it and punched in Horatio's mobile number using her nose. She moved so it was close to her ear and mouth, she heard the dial tone and waited for him to answer.

"Horatio Caine" he answered as he picked his phone up.

"Horatio! It's Zoë!" Zoë almost shouted.

"Zoë?" Horatio gasped, shocked.

"Yes, I've just woken up in your kitchen tied up!" She said frantically.

"I'm on my way over." Horatio said and then hung up and picked up his gun as he ran out of the house and down the road and let himself in.

"Zoë!" Horatio said as he got in and closed the door after him and crouched down.

"I just woke up, they have Nathan." She said looking up at him as he placed his hands either side of her face.

"It's okay sweetheart, you're safe, I'm here." Horatio said softly and then reached into a pocket and pulled out a pen-knife and leant over her and cut her hands loose. He could see that tears had fallen from her eyes.

"It's okay sweetheart." Horatio said softly and then moved down to her legs and cut them free. She sat up and threw her arms around Horatio.

"They have Nathan, Horatio!" She said frantically as she pulled back.

"What? How do you know that?" Horatio questioned as he delicately placed his hand on the side of her face and brushed her temple.

"I saw him at the shop, he helped me to get the sopping back to the car. I closed the boot and someone came up behind. They knocked me out, the next thing I know is that I'm over someone's shoulder, they had an address written down in their back pocket. Nathan was also knocked out, he had some blood on his head where they'd hit him. I blacked out and then the next thing I know is that I'm in some car and Nathan was still unconscious, I couldn't fight as I felt so weak and then I felt them inject me with something, then I saw them inject Nathan with something and then I woke up here."

"We've been out looking for you all night, I didn't even think to check here." Horatio said softly as he cupped her face, just thankful that she was unharmed.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly as she glanced down.

"Don't apologise, it wasn't your fault." Horatio said softly as he lifted her chin to look into her eyes.

"They've got him, I don't know why though! Why would they want Nathan? I didn't get a look at their faces and I didn't recognise any of their voices." She said, looking up at Horatio, clearly very worried.

"Okay sweetheart, I'll put out a BOLO for him." Horatio said and Zoë nodded as he helped her to stand by gently pulling her up.

"I'm going to ring him." She said as she patted herself down to find her phone.

"Here, I have your phone." Horatio said softly and she took it with a shy smile.

"Thank you." She said as she unlocked it and found his name and called him.

"There's no answer." Zoë said softly as she pulled the phone away from her ear and looked down from it.

"Don't worry, we'll find him." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded slowly. She glanced round and looked back into his kitchen and tears began to fill her eyes. She looked back to Horatio and then down at her hands.

"Come on sweetheart." Horatio said softly as he placed his hand on her back. She hesitantly moved with him as she tried to push the horrible memories she was seeing away. They got out of the house and Horatio pulled the front door closed. Zoë just continued to walk down his drive and away from the house, wanting to get away from it. Horatio turned around and jogged over to her and placed his arm around her back as he walked with her. She pulled out her phone and called Nathan again, when there was no answer she left him a message.

"Hi Nathan, could you please call me back as soon as you get this, thanks." She exhaled and put her phone back in her pocket then began to rub her wrists as she looked down at them and saw a dark red line over both of them.

"I thought you were selling the house?" Zoë asked.

"I'm in the process of it, it's going up on the market next week sweetheart." Horatio said softly and she nodded.

"Well, whoever has him clearly knows us and the fact that we don't use your house any longer." Zoë mumbled quietly.

"I'm sorry I didn't find you sooner, Zoë." Horatio apologised as they walked up her drive.

"Don't beat yourself up about it, it's fine. I wouldn't expect you to check yours anyway." She said softly as she let them in.

"Do you hurt anywhere, Zoë?" Horatio questioned softly and she shook her head with a small smile.

"Are you sure?" Horatio questioned.

"Yes, I'm sure." Zoë said softly.

"Why aren't you at work, anyway?" She questioned Horatio.

"Well, you were missing… work wasn't exactly the top of my priority list… and it's Saturday." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded. She flicked her shoes up and ran upstairs.

"Zoë!?" Horatio questioned, startled by her sudden dash upstairs. He took his shoes off and briskly walked up the stairs and into the room.

"Zoë, are you okay?" Horatio questioned as he walked into the bedroom and stood by the en-suite door as she had it closed.

'_She never closes it fully, she always closes it too.'_ Horatio thought to himself.

"Zoë, are you okay?" Horatio called louder as he knocked.

"Yeah" she called from the bathroom and Horatio heard her stripping off.

"May I come in?" Horatio questioned softly, sensing her need for privacy, but his need to know that she was okay was overwhelming him.

"Erm, I'm okay thank you." She said softly and Horatio exhaled, knowing she was blocking him out.

"I'm just taking a shower." She called through the door.

"Okay, shout if you need anything." Horatio said softly as he walked away from the door. He sat on the bed and rang Eric to inform him that Zoë had been found and told him to inform the police and to also put out a BOLO for Nathan. He finished on the phone and then got up again. '_She must be hurt, or something if she doesn't want me in there.'_ Horatio thought to himself.

"Zoë, I'm coming in." Horatio said softly and he then opened the door and walked in as she turned around in the shower and gave him a soft, natural smile over the frosted glass.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Horatio questioned and she nodded at him with a reassuring smile.

"Are you hurt?" Horatio questioned, studying her behaviour.

"No, I'm good." She said with a smile.

"Zoë, you're acting a little odd, I'm going to put it out there." Horatio said softly and she looked at him.

"I'm sorry, I'm just a little stressed." She said softly and Horatio nodded at her.

"Okay, I only want to be certain that you're not hurt." Horatio said softly and she exhaled as she looked down and then turned around and picked up the shower gel.

"You are hurt, aren't you?" Horatio questioned and she didn't reply she just continued to wash.

"Zoë, what's wrong, where are you hurt?" Horatio questioned.

"I'm fine." She snapped and then immediately regretted it. "I'm sorry." She said quietly as she turned around to look at him.

"It's okay sweetheart. Just talk to me." Horatio said softly as she washed the body wash off. She turned the shower off and Horatio picked the towel up from the towel rack and held it out for her as she stepped out. She wrapped it around herself and looked up at him.

"I'm good, I've just got a bruise on my side, that's all. I just wanted to check myself over." She said softly as she walked over to the mirror and checked her eyebrows.

"Let me take a look, please." Horatio asked softly as he followed her out of the bathroom into the bedroom where she threw a new set of pants and bra on to the bed.

"It's just a bruise, Horatio. I'm more concerned about the fact that some deranged criminals have Nathan, not my bruised side." She snapped as she walked away and into the wardrobe and picked out a new suit and shirt. Horatio exhaled and closed his eyes as he realised he was causing her more stress.

"I'm so sorry." She said as she glanced up at him then back to the cream carpet, she knew she was being stubborn and harsh.

"It's okay, I understand, don't apologise." Horatio said softly. She continued to look down as she tried to keep her emotions under wraps and knew if she looked up at him she'd end up crying. '_I hate feeling stressed, why do bad things always have to happen?'_ She thought to herself.

"Zoë, don't bottle it up. Talk to me." Horatio said softly as he stepped forwards, closer to her. He saw her tense a little but continued to move closer as he reached out and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Zoë, speak to me." Horatio asked softly and she glanced up at him. She swallowed and then just threw her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. He wrapped his left around her back as his right hand disappeared into her hair.

"I just want to find Nathan, I need to know that he's okay." Zoë mumbled softly and Horatio nodded.

"I'm sorry for not being able to get hold of you sooner than this morning." She mumbled.

"Don't apologise sweetheart, that's okay. I'm just happy that you're okay." Horatio said softly.

"I will find him." Zoë said softly as she pulled away.

"I have no doubt that you will." Horatio said softly and she gave him a small smile. She reached up and placed her hands on his shoulders and slowly kissed him. She pulled away and walked around the bed and quickly got dressed. Horatio caught a glimpse of the bruise she didn't want to show him and he realised why as it covered a large portion of her side, going from her ribs down to her hip.

"You go to the lab, I'm going to find Nathan." She said softly as she adjusted her jacket.

"You know full well that isn't going to happen." Horatio scoffed as he raised his eyebrows.

"What? I'd have thought you'd want to go to the lab to get on with tracking Nathan down? I'd rather go out and look for myself." Zoë said sincerely as she stood up straight and looked at him, looking confused.

"Yes, but you're not going out by yourself, Zoë. You know that there's a very low chance of finding him if you go out looking for him, he's not going to be in plain sight. You need to treat this as any other missing person's case, Zoë." Horatio said softly and she scowled at him.

"I know just where to start – with the address that was in one of the men's trousers." Zoë argued. "I want to check it out." She added.

"I don't think so, I'll have patrol check it out, I'm not putting you in any risk at all." Horatio said as he adjusted his jacket.

"No, you know what threat that could pose to Nathan! We've been in these situations before and I'm not letting anything happen to Nathan. If they wanted me dead or hurt, they had their chance last night, but instead they let me wake up in your kitchen, it doesn't sound like I'm in too much danger to me." She argued.

"You're not going alone if you're that adamant." Horatio said, trying to keep his tone soft and she nodded. She looked up at him and then glanced down at her phone on the bed as it bleeped at her. She picked it up and read it.

"_You should be back with us now, I trust you've realised that we have someone who's close to you. You have 12 hours to find him, or he'll be blown to pieces."_ She re-read the text, confused, they hadn't asked for a ransom or given her anything to bargain, she didn't see the point in them taking Nathan.

"What is it?" Horatio questioned and she glanced up at him, then back to the message and handed him the phone as she studied his facial expression as he read it.

"What's the point? They've not given us anything, is this all a game to them, whoever they are? Are they giving me a challenge or what?" She questioned, lowering her eyebrows, looking at Horatio as he exhaled. He shook his head as he rubbed his eyes.

"There's a reason behind this, I just don't know it yet." Horatio said softly as he called the number that had texted her but he was cut off immediately.

"Don't worry, we'll find him." Horatio said softly as he placed his hand on her back as he handed her the phone back.

"Right, I'm going to have SWAT and patrol stand half a mile out while we go ahead and see what's going on at the house. You are to stay out of danger if it presents itself, you stay behind me at all times, you get out of the house immediately if I tell you to, okay?" Horatio asked softly yet firmly.

"Okay, okay. Come on, we're wasting time." Zoë said softly. Horatio pulled his phone out and had patrol on standby with SWAT. They jumped into Horatio's car and headed over to the address that Zoë had seen while she and Nathan were taken. They pulled over and waited for SWAT and patrol to arrive before heading forwards after Horatio had de-briefed them. They pulled up outside the house and both pulled out their guns and hopped out of the car.

"Behind me, Zoë!" Horatio raised his voice above a whispter and Zoë dropped back, stalking up to the house behind him. '_I'm glad I put my vans plimsolls on.' _She thought to herself as they walked over the muddy garden. They reached the porch and Horatio silently counted down from 3.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

When he reached 1, they kicked the door in and both trained their guns on anything. They saw the passage clear and both entered, they reached the first door and Zoë glanced in. She saw a man blind-folded and gagged with his hands tied behind his back and his feet tied in front as he sat on a small wooden chair. The man looked up as he heard the commotion. He swallowed, Zoë headed in first as Horatio backed in, listening and keeping his eye out.

"It's okay Nathan, it's Zoë and Horatio, we're going to get you out of here." Zoë said softly as she put her gun away and untied his blind fold and gag at the same time.

"There's a bomb under the chair!" Nathan said frantically as he looked up at Zoë.

"Horatio, there's a bomb, I need you to sort it while I keep a look out." Zoë said softly. Horatio turned around as he headed towards Nathan as Zoë turned around and pulled her gun back out, in case.

"Is there anyone here?" Zoë questioned Nathan with her back to him with her eyes and gun trained on the entrance.

"Yes" Nathan said frantically.

"It's okay, we've got you. You're safe now. Don't worry, take a deep breath." Zoë said smoothly and he took the deep breath as Horatio crouched down behind the chair.

"Okay Nathan, I need you to keep extremely still for me. Zoë, get out of here now." Horatio said softly as he studied the live bomb, sat under the chair.

"No" she said defiantly as she parted her legs slightly to hold a stronger stance as she heard footsteps.

"Nathan, I need you to remain very calm and very still, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you." Zoë said softly.

"Zoë, get out now, I'll handle this." Horatio said softly.

"No, I can handle it, you just concentrate on that bomb. I don't care if they hurt me, just get that bomb disarmed." She growled, tightening her grip on the gun.

"Promise me, Horatio." She asked.

"Horatio" She asked.

"I'm not promising anything, Zoë." Horatio said as he pulled his pen knife from his pocket.

"Just concentrate on the bomb, I can handle them. Don't get in the way." She said as a man appeared at the door.

"Don't come any closer." Zoë warned him.

"Concentrate on the bomb, Horatio!" She said, knowing he was just about to get up. Suddenly, two men ran in fast. She was able to catch one in the arm as she fired her weapon. She didn't have time to catch the other man and he pushed her to the floor.

"Concentrate on the bomb." She reminded Horatio who was just about to get up. He saw the timer speeding up when he fiddled with it and he knew he couldn't leave it otherwise they'd all be blown to pieces.

Zoë managed to kick him off and he rolled onto his back, clutching his groin. She got to her feet, just as quickly as the other man, he was just a little taller than her and well-built. He took a swing at her but she blocked his punch and returned one back at him, catching him in the jaw. He continued to throw punches at her but she continued to block them. She backed him up against the wall and took a large swing at him and caught him in the side of the head. She backed off when she saw him in a slight daze. He shook his head then charged at her again, she bent down and took hold of his legs and flipped him over her back and left him writhing on the floor. Horatio looked at her.

"I'm fine, keep your concentration on that bomb." She ordered. The man with a shot arm struggled to his feet.

"I wouldn't rise to the challenge." She growled at him and he lifted his good arm and charged at her. She took hold of his wrist and used his momentum to drag his arm up behind his back and push him into the wall.

"I warned you." She said as she let go of his wrist with one hand and raised it to his wounded arm and pressed on a tender spot, not on the wound, but close to it.

"You should listen to warnings in the future." She growled in his ear as she backed off him and threw him to the floor as he cried in pain. The uninjured man made his way to his feet.

"You have got to be joking me, beaten by a woman?" He hissed as he held his ground.

"What? Afraid of getting beaten by a woman? How very old fashioned and sexist of you." She growled sarcastically.

"That was easy, I underestimated you. You're going to get it now." He grinned as he charged at her. She held her fist out and he ran straight into it.

"Sorry, what was that?" She asked with a grin of her own, feeling the adrenaline surge through her body and loving it. He straightened himself out.

"You've messed with the wrong guy." He said as he held his nose.

"Why's that?" She grinned.

"Use your gun, Zoë!" Horatio yelled. She could easily reach for the gun, but she loved the feeling of hand-on combat.

"Keep your concentration on that bomb." She reminded him and he exhaled as he looked down at it.

3 minutes until detonation and Horatio's heart was going berserk, he wanted to protect Zoë, but couldn't leave the bomb as he wouldn't have the time to disarm it.

"Get out, Zoë." Horatio yelled and she heard the frustration in his voice.

"No, just calm down, you can do it." Zoë said smoothly.

"Because I'm a black-belt in martial arts." The man grinned as he ran at her again. She grinned at him and then literally jumped in the air and kicked him in his stomach, he backed off as she threw a punch at him in his jaw and then backed off with a smile.

"Black-belt, huh? Doesn't look like it. May I ask what martial art?" She grinned.

"Karate" he growled as he ran at her again. She immediately stopped him and defended herself as he threw punches and kicks.

"That's good, I'm only a brown belt in Karate." She grinned as he broke from her grip and threw more punches at her, only to be slapped away.

"Zoë, stop playing!" Horatio scalded loudly, he could hear the excitement, playfulness and exhilaration in her voice. The man backed off, assessing her weaknesses and how he could overcome her well-practiced defence. Horatio's heart began to beat faster as the timer was now in the seconds.

"Zoë, get out, now!" Horatio yelled as he frantically tried to stop the bomb. Zoë was too much in her own world, enjoying the fight. The man began to charge at her.

"The bomb is disarmed" Horatio exhaled a sigh of relief, he stood and watched the man charging at Zoë.

"Zoë!" Horatio yelled as he glanced up at her from untying Nathan's wrists. Zoë turned and ran at both Nathan and Horatio, both of their eyes widened as she jumped at them. Both of their mouths opened as they saw her feet land on the arm-rests on the chair. They watched her jump back, off the chair, flipping in the air while the man continued to run but slowed as he watched her above him. As she began to return to the ground, she wrapped her legs around his neck. He was dragged back and down to the floor as she grabbed his flailing arms and pressed on both pressure points in the wrists. They both landed hard on the floor in front of Nathan.

"I guess now is a good time to tell you I'm a black belt in 3 other martial arts… I'm also good a gymnastics." She grinned as she got up and flipped him over onto his front and pulled her cuffs from her belt and fastened them around his wrists. She pulled up him and pushed him into the corner and then pushed him to the ground.

"If you have any sense, you'd stay there." She growled, addressing both men.

She turned around and looked at both Nathan and Horatio who stared at her open mouthed.

"I've not had a fight like that in ages. It felt good. However, the opposition could have been better." She mumbled as she walked over to them and then crouched down to untie Nathan's feet.

She looked up as she pulled the cord from around his ankles.

"What's your name?" She asked, looking at Nathan. Both of them lowered their eyebrows confused.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"What's your name?" She questioned again when she didn't get a response.

"Nathan" he replied, looking confused. She stood and placed her hands on her hips.

"No, it's not. What is your name?" She pressed.

"Zoë, it's Nathan." Horatio said, confused himself. Zoë glanced up at him then turned around when she heard a pair of footsteps at the door. Horatio immediately reached for his gun. The man looked Zoë up and down with a smile as he licked his lips.

"Don't come any closer, I will shoot." Horatio warned but the man stepped forwards and Horatio fired his weapon.

"Are you all morons?" Zoë questioned, looking down at them, confused as they all writhed in pain. The man that was just shot let out a few groans.

"All of you, put your hands over the wound and press down hard. We'll have help here soon." Zoë said as she turned back around to look down at the man in the chair.

"You are not Nathan, do not lie to me." She warned, looking at him sternly.

"I am, what are you talking about?" He questioned, as he stood when she took a step back from him.

"Zoë, are you feeling okay?" Horatio asked softly, growing extremely concerned. She strengthened her stance towards them as her eyes hardened on the man who she was convinced was not Nathan.

"Yes, I'm fine. But you're not Nathan. You have a hint of green in your right iris, your hair is thinner and you're about 10lbs heavier than Nathan, not to mention that your voice is slightly higher! I suggest you start talking to me and telling me the truth or I'll have to assume that you're in on this." She growled at him. Horatio walked around and stepped by Zoë, to him, he looked exactly like Nathan, but he saw the hint of green in his eye, but he wasn't sure if Nathan had the hint of green in his eye or not. He lowered his eyebrows.

"Okay, I'm not Nathan, but he's my brother, my twin. They said to tell you that I was Nathan or they'd kill me and him, honestly. I have no idea what is going on, one minute I'm at work, the next I'm here." He pleaded, obviously scared.

"Okay" Zoë said as she nodded, she knew he was telling the truth.

"Don't worry" she said softly as she reached up and placed her hand on the side of his head and turned it to get a look at a gash on the side of his cheek. Suddenly, police and SWAT bowled through the door. She glanced back and then looked to Horatio.

"When did you notify them?" She questioned softly.

"A few minutes ago, you were in danger." He said softly and she gave him a small nod.

"We need paramedics here." Zoë said and one officer nodded at her and radioed for a few ambulances.

"What's your name?" Zoë questioned softly as she looked back to Nathan's brother.

"Matthew, but please call me Matt." He said softly, shyly.

"Okay Matt, if you'd like to go with these officers they'll take you back to the station after getting your cheek looked at. There's no need to worry, you're not in trouble, they just need to take your statement. Don't worry about Nathan, we'll find him, I promise you that." She said with determination. He gave her a soft nod.

"Thank you." He said softly and Zoë gave him a kind smile. He shyly walked out to one of the waiting officers and Zoë turned back to Horatio.

"Zoë, you put yourself in unnecessary danger." He scolded.

"No I didn't, did you see him trying to fight? He was pathetic." She said as she looked round to him.

"That doesn't excuse it, you were playing around." He scolded quietly as he moved in closer to her.

"I'm sorry, I got carried away. I've not had a fight in some time and it got my adrenaline running…" She said looking up at him.

"You decided to play around with him because you hadn't had a fight in some time, Zoë, I'm not happy about this." He said quietly.

"I know, I can see that. I've said I'm sorry, but I genuinely couldn't help myself, once my adrenaline was going, I was gone with it. That's why I try not to get into fights, I know I'll lose myself otherwise." She said looking up at him.

"Don't ever do that again, I don't care if you can defend yourself. Next time you use your gun if it's in reach. You only fight if it's absolutely necessary." He said lowly, his heart still beating wildly. She bent down and picked up her gun and placed it in her holster. She nodded at him then stopped to concentrate.

"Why do they want Nathan? Where is he? Why have they put his brother in the middle of this?" She asked. She exhaled and glanced around, realising that the paramedics had taken all of the criminals out.

"Who the fuck are these people?" She questioned loudly.

"Zoë, calm down sweetheart." Horatio said softly, seeing her at boiling point. '_What is going on? Why do they want Nathan? Nathan hasn't done anything! I don't understand.'_ She thought to herself.

"I just don't understand" she said frustrated as she looked up at Horatio.

"Okay, it's okay. We'll find him." Horatio assured her. "Take a deep breath for me." He added as he placed his hand on her arm.

"If they've hurt him, I will kill them." She muttered as her jaw tightened.

"Come on, let's get some fresh air" Horatio said smoothly as he moved and placed a hand on her back.

"Shh, hold on." She said as she moved from his hand and turned around. She stilled and listened, Horatio began to listen, having seen her concentrate. He heard nothing and exhaled. He could see her becoming extremely stressed and he placed his hand on her lower back as he took a gentle hold of her arm and eased her out of the house. They slowly walked back to the hummer while Zoë put everything together in her head. Ryan approached them from out of the blue.

"Nathan has a twin?" He questioned as he reached them, they both looked up at him.

"It looks like it." Zoë muttered, still thinking about it all. Ryan could see that she was stressed and concentrating hard.

"Come on, back to the lab." Horatio said softly. Zoë turned back to the house and looked at it.

"I'll be back in a moment." She said softly and Horatio gave her a nod, knowing she wanted some space. She walked back to the house as Horatio turned to Ryan and quietly told him to give her some space. They had a small conversation, Horatio giving Ryan the details but eventually pulled away from Ryan to go in search of Zoë.

"Zoë, come on sweetheart." Horatio said softly, knowing she was highly stressed and desperate to find Nathan.

"No, there's something I'm missing." She said as she walked back into the front room from the kitchen with Horatio following.

"We've been over the house, there's nothing else here." Horatio assured her.

"No, I know I'm missing something, please I need a little quiet." She said as she glanced around and seemed to listen intensely. Horatio closed his mouth and watched her study the room. She walked over to the back wall and placed her hand on the wall as she stood there. She looked back round to Horatio and then exhaled.

"Come on sweetheart, we'll get started at the lab." He said softly. She gave him a nod and then reluctantly walked out with him. They reached the hummer when Zoë's phone bleeped at her again. She pulled it out of her pocket as she opened the door. She read it as Horatio jumped into the driver's seat.

"_I see you've found out that Nathan has a twin, it's unfortunate that you pay such attention to those little details. I'm still intrigued at how you found them so quickly. Don't you worry, I'm taking excellent care of Nathan, we're closer than you'd think."_ She re-read the text as Horatio got out and walked around to her after getting no response from her when he spoke to her. '_Closer as in distance or closer as in social? Do I know this guy? Does Nathan know this guy?'_ She thought to herself.

"What's wrong?" Horatio repeated as he stepped up close behind her. She looked back at the house as she concentrated, connecting things in her head as Horatio glanced over her shoulder at her phone. Horatio placed his hand on the side of her waist and stepped closer to her to get a better look at the phone to read the text.

"Ow" she yelped as she jumped forward.

"I'm sorry beautiful." Horatio said realising he placed his hand firmly on her bruised side.

"It's okay." She said softly as she handed him her phone and looked back at the house, she realised that he was trying to get a look at the phone when he was stood behind her. She began to walk back to the house as Horatio read the message. Horatio looked up at Zoë and then rushed over to her as they walked over to the house. Zoë walked over the garden and headed for the back of the house and Horatio followed as he held out her phone and handed it back to her. They reached the back garden.

"What are you thinking?" Horatio questioned quietly as he placed his hand on her back, where she wasn't bruised.

"That Nathan is here." Zoë said softly as they looked down at a few steps that led to a door.

"There is a basement here… there was no door that led to the basement in the house, it must have been blocked off." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded as he pulled his gun from his holster.

"I could have sworn that I heard noises coming for the air vents and pipes." She mumbled as she pulled her weapon from her holster and began to walk down the steps. Horatio rushed down and pulled her back and stood by the door, in front of her.

"3…2…1" Horatio counted down and they both kicked the door in again. Horatio was first to enter the dimly lit room, only to have the gun knocked out of his hands by a man who leapt forwards and kicked his wrists. Zoë quickly entered while Horatio began to fight back.

"Nathan!?" Zoë questioned and he nodded as he began to squirm in the seat, tied up. Zoë quickly pulled the gag from his mouth and then glanced round to Horatio and the man to find that the larger man had Horatio against the wall. Zoë put her gun away and ran over to them, pulling the man's hands from around Horatio's neck and up against his back.

"Nathan! Stay still!" Horatio yelled when he spotted the bomb under his chair. Zoë pulled the man away from Horatio and then pushed him against the wall again.

"I've got this, get the bomb, Horatio." Zoë yelled. Horatio quickly made his way to Nathan as Zoë reached for her handcuffs, only to remember that she'd cuffed the other criminal.

"Horatio, I need your cuffs." She called and Horatio looked up at her and then stood, pulling his cuffs out and then began to walk around to her. She glanced up at the screen on the side and saw the front room on screen.

The man suddenly pushed back, catching Zoë's bruised side and she involuntarily let him go as she brought her hands up to her side in an effort to soothe it. The man stood there, glaring at both Zoë and Horatio. He surged forwards to go after Horatio, determining that it was best if he took out Horatio first. But before he could lay his hands on Horatio, Zoë had jumped in front of him and defended herself from the fist he'd thrown.

"Put the cuffs by Nathan, I'll sort him out." Zoë said as she kicked him in the stomach and then elbowed him in the face as he bent over and backed off.

"You've just seen me take out 2 of your men, I'd back down." She growled at him but he ignored her. He ran at her, but she again held out her fist and he ran straight into it.

"Horatio, sort the bomb out, I'm good here." She said softly and Horatio tried to push her away to defend her.

"Horatio, I can deal with him, you deal with the bomb." She said more forcefully and he backed off, again, hearing her I-wouldn't-mess-with-me tone. He crouched down behind Nathan and offered him some soothing words to keep him calm. Nathan watched Zoë defend herself well against the larger man's fists and feet, then witnessed her jump in the air and kick him in the chin. As he crouched to recover she grabbed his wrist and pressed on his pressure point and he tried to grab her wrist in order to get her off but she spun him around and pushed him to the floor and pulled his arm up his back.

"I told you to back off." She growled. Nathan watched the man struggle beneath her as she patiently waited for Horatio to finish with the bomb so he could cuff him.

"Concentrate on the bomb, you're doing well." She said softly to Horatio as she saw him panicking, even though on the outside he looked remarkably cool and calm.

"Zoë!" Nathan yelled as he watched the man pull a knife from his pocket and bring it down to her thigh. She felt the tip pierce her skin but she grabbed his wrist before he could push the knife deeper.

"Horatio!" Nathan yelled as Horatio looked back over to them and saw Zoë trying to push his hand away, but she wasn't strong enough. Horatio ran over to her and kicked his hand away then pulled her off him and aimed his gun at his head. The man dropped the knife.

"I wouldn't move, if I were you." Horatio warned lowly. The door then opened and Ryan ran in with patrol officers.

"Get him out of here." Horatio said as Ryan pulled his gun out and trained it on the man. Patrol quickly picked him up and cuffed him.

"Get out, Ryan. We'll be out in a moment." She said softly.

"Zoë, you're hurt, we need to get you looked at." Ryan argued when he saw her covering the pain she was experiencing. '_I have to get him out, he can't be in here if the bomb goes off.'_ She thought to herself.

"Ryan, just get out now. Please." She asked a little more forcefully and he nodded then walked out as she took a deep breath.

"Okay sweetie, we're going to get you out of here." Zoë said as she walked over to Nathan.

"Where are we with the bomb?" Zoë questioned looking up at Horatio as he rushed back over and crouched down behind Nathan.

"We've got a few minutes. Zoë get out of here now." Horatio said forcefully.

"No, just get on with the bomb now." She said as she crouched down and looked at the restraints on Nathan's ankles.

"Don't worry Nathan, stay calm, we'll get you out of here." She said softly as she placed her hand on his leg.

"Are they attached to the bomb?" Zoë questioned and Horatio nodded at her.

"Just stay very still, you're going to be fine, I promise you." She said as she stood and placed her hand on Nathan's face.

"Don't worry." She assured him again, seeing the terror in his eyes. Her eyes trained in on the gash on his head where he'd been knocked out.

"You're going to have to play the patient role a little later." Zoë said with a small smile. Nathan looked up at her, slightly shocked that she could remain so calm in that situation.

"You are too." He said quietly.

She looked down at him with a raised eyebrow "it's only bruising, I'll heal".

"Are you okay sweetie? Did they hurt you?" She questioned softly.

"They were about to start taking my fingers off, but you and Horatio entered upstairs. He stopped and watched on that screen. Is Matt okay?" He questioned.

"Yes, Matt is good, he's at MDPD at the moment. Do you hurt anywhere?" She asked softly.

"Well, it's not exactly comfortable, but not hurting." He said softly and Zoë nodded.

"Zoë, get out, please." Horatio said frantically as the timer was getting lower and lower.

"I thought he said we had 12 hours, it's been 2." Zoë said softly.

"They did something to the timers when you arrived as you arrived sooner than they expected." Nathan said softly.

"Have they asked you anything? I'm so sorry, Nathan. I don't understand why they've taken you though." She said softly as she glanced over and down at Horatio as he fiddled with the bomb.

"They were trying to get information on you and Horatio, I don't know why. I didn't give them anything, which is why they threatened to take my fingers." Nathan said frantically as he really began to panic.

"Nathan, calm down for me, you're doing really, really well. Take a deep breath for me sweetie." She said softly as she ran a hand through his hair. He looked up at her.

"Did they ask anything specific?" Zoë questioned.

"No, they just wanted to know everything about you and your medical history. I have no idea why, I'm sorry. But I really didn't give them anything." Nathan said softly.

"It's okay, thank you, Nathan. Don't worry; we'll have you out of here in no time." She said softly.

"Horatio, where are we at?" She questioned as Nathan took a few deep breaths.

"Nearly done" he said as he fiddled with wires and glanced up at her.

"Okay." She said softly.

"I'm so sorry that you're involved in any of this, they'd knocked me out before they got you." Zoë said softly. Nathan nodded as he continued to take deep breaths in order to keep calm.

"Nice moves though, remind me never to piss you off or fight with you." Nathan said softly as he looked up at her.

"Thank you." She chuckled.

"That was me going easy on them." Zoë grinned softly. Horatio began to sweat a little as the timer was getting lower and lower and he believed that he wasn't going to disarm it in time. He swallowed as the timer got to 30 seconds. '_If I get Zoë out now, she'll be spared. But I can't leave Nathan, can I? If I cut the restraints, it'll detonate. But if I don't get her out of here, she'll be killed.'_ He thought to himself.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

"Disarmed" Horatio said with a sigh as he began to untie Nathan's hands.

"Well done, Horatio." She said softly as she crouched. She untied his ankles and threw the cable to the side and then stood and held her hands out to Nathan.

"Come on sweetie, we need to get you checked out." She said softly and he stood after taking her hands.

"I'm so sorry, Nathan. I didn't want you to get caught up in our work." She apologised.

"Don't worry about it sweet, I'm safe, I have you to look after me." He said with a small smile. A paramedic ran over to them.

"Hey, what's going on, are you okay?" Ryan asked frantically as he rushed over to them, he feared that Zoë was hurt.

"We're good, Nathan just needs a check over." She said with a soft smile.

"Are you going to be okay to ride with Nathan? I'll need to take the car." Horatio said softly as she and Nathan sat on the two seats beside the bed.

"Yes, I'll be fine." She said softly and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Thank you, and I'm sorry." She said as she took hold of Horatio's hand and pulled him closer. The paramedic began to look at Nathan's head.

"Okay, we're going to get you to the hospital now." The young man said and Zoë pulled Horatio down and placed a kiss on his lips. He gave her a small smile and then gave her another kiss.

"I'll see you both at the hospital." Horatio said softly and they nodded at him. One paramedic closed the back doors and hopped into the front while the other wrote a few things down and placed a pulse oximeter on Nathan.

"Do you mind if I use your stethoscope? I'm usually her doctor." Nathan questioned and the paramedic handed it to him.

"What are you doing, Nathan?" Zoë asked.

"I need to make sure that all that fighting hasn't pushed your pacemaker about. I told you no rough sports, I think fighting is classed as a rough sport." He said softly and then unbuttoned a couple of her top buttons and listened to her chest, she didn't resist. He then placed his hand against the side of her ribcage and felt the pacemaker.

"Do you feel tired or faint?" He asked softly.

"No, I feel fine." She replied. He nodded at her and then passed the stethoscope back to the paramedic then took her pulse and felt around her stomach.

"Nathan, I'm good. You're the one that needs to be checked out." She said softly.

"I need to check." He said softly and Zoë let him get on with it. Zoë hissed in pain when he pressed on her bruised side.

"What? What's wrong?" He asked then pulled her shirt out of her trousers before she even had time to answer him.

"Nathan, it's just a bruise." She said softly, knowing she couldn't argue as he'd already seen the bruise.

"When and how did you get that?" Nathan questioned as he felt around the bruise.

"I got it after they took me." She exhaled.

"This bruising is extensive, Zoë." He said softly.

"I know, I looked at it this morning. They kidnapped us, Nathan, they're not going to be gentle with us." Zoë scoffed as she lowered her eyebrows at him and Nathan nodded.

"Don't worry about it sweetie." She said softly and he pulled her shirt back down.

"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked softly.

"Yes, it's only a scratch." He said softly as he gave her a reassuring smile.

"You know you can't stitch it yourself, don't you?" Zoë questioned.

"I can give it a go." Nathan said softly.

"No, you're going to have to be treated by another doctor. You'll see how hard it is to follow orders then." She grinned at him. Nathan smiled at her and chuckled a little.

"How are you feeling mentally?" Zoë questioned quietly.

"A little shaken if I'm honest, I can safely say that I'd never want to experience that again." He said softly as he looked up at her.

"I know what you mean. If you need to talk about it, my door is always open." She said softly.

"Anyway, why didn't you mention that you had a twin?" She asked with a small smile.

"Well, it never came up in conversation if I'm perfectly honest." Nathan said sweetly.

"Well, it was nice to meet him, even if it was under difficult circumstances." She said softly and Nathan nodded.

"Just out of interest, how did you know he wasn't me? I know they told him that he had to tell you that he was me." Nathan said softly.

"Ah, well, his hair is thinner, he also has a hint of green in his right eye, you don't and he's a little bigger than you." Zoë said with a smile.

"You do have an eye for the details, don't you?" Nathan said with a smile.

"I do, and in this case, it worked out for the better." She smiled softly. They soon arrived at the hospital and Nathan walked in with Zoë and greeted the doctor.

"Ah, Zoë, Nathan." James Sharp, the doctor said softly. Zoë gave him a small smile and took hold of Nathan's hand when some nurses walked over to them.

"It's okay, both Dr Sharp and I have this." Nathan said and the nurses gave him a nod and walked away.

"We're going to take you through to minors Nathan." James said softly.

"I know James." He said softly as she loosened her grip on Nathan's hand as they went through to a cubical.

"Do you want pain medication?" He asked softly.

"No, I'm good thanks, it's literally only a scratch." Nathan insisted

"It's going to hurt, a lot. I suggest you take the pain medication." James insisted.

"I'm okay, thank you." Nathan said back, insisting. She let go of Nathan's hand when she heard Horatio's voice by the nurses' station.

"I'm going to wait with Horatio, come and find us when you're ready." Zoë said softly and Nathan nodded. She walked out and walked into the waiting room with Horatio.

"Well, I can't say that I expected you to be that good at combat." He said softly and she chuckled a little.

"Yes, well, I've participated in martial arts since a child and since the first time Ratner took us, I've been training again." She said softly.

"Why haven't you used these skills before when we've been in danger?" Horatio questioned.

"I've been out of practise for years, I never felt confident in trying to fight again, not until I started training again. I would never fight if I didn't feel confident in myself and my skills because I wouldn't want to get hurt and I wouldn't want to end up killing anyone like that. I did try and fight when they poisoned me, you saw me trying to fight them, but my motor and neurological processes were shutting down so I wasn't on top form. I couldn't fight when they took me from your kitchen as they'd already shot me full of tranquilizer and when I woke up and you were there I was in too much pain. I try and avoid fighting at all costs because once I start, it's incredibly difficult to stop. You saw me earlier, I couldn't stop myself even though you begged me to. It had my adrenaline running and I'm quite literally an adrenaline addict. That's why I try to keep away from things that will ignite that adrenaline as I know I won't stop, I've always been like it. I cannot tell you how much I love fighting, but it's horrible, it's horrible for those around me to watch. I know you won't like that side of me so I try and keep it hidden. Before you ask about why I didn't fight Jack, I did, I tried. But he had the advantage of strength and my collar bone was still hurting. He'd already pinned me against those lockers before I had a chance to even begin to defend myself. I'm sorry Horatio, I know it's a part of me that I hate, and I don't expect you to like it at all." Zoë said softly.

"I see." Horatio said softly.

"You don't hate me, do you?" She asked as she looked down and Horatio chuckled.

"Of course I don't hate you beautiful, I was just terrified that you were going to get hurt. Your gun is there to protect you, you need to use that if you can. I'd understand if you didn't have a gun if you fought against them, but you did." Horatio said softly and she nodded as she continued to look down, like a scolded puppy.

"So, you're a brown belt in Karate?" Horatio questioned with a smile.

"Yeah, I stopped when I got to the brown belt as I left for University, and I already had 3 other black belts." She said with a smile when he tried to bring her mood up and take an interest in her skills.

"Black belts in what?" Horatio questioned.

"Kick-boxing, Kung Fu and Judo" she smiled. Horatio raised his eyebrows, slightly surprised.

"I just haven't had a chance to properly demonstrate my skills before in front of you." She smiled shyly.

"Why do you have so much?" Horatio questioned.

"Because when I moved in with my aunt and uncle, I had a problem with anger, also with low confidence, it was my way of releasing that anger through training… and it took a lot of training to release it, my confidence also grew with my skills." She said softly and Horatio nodded at her.

"My uncle was also happy that I could defend myself, so happily sent me to classes and when I got to the top of one particular martial art, I'd beg him to send me to another, I loved learning new things. I loved how it felt when I was training and fighting. I wanted to make him proud so I did anything and everything I could to put a smile on his face, truth be told that he said that he was always proud of me and he really was but I never believed him so I continued to push myself to be better." She said as she looked down.

"Well, it's good to know that you can defend yourself if need be. I'm still learning things about you, it amazes me." Horatio grinned as he placed his hand over hers. She smiled up at him.

"Well done for earlier, by the way Zoë." Horatio praised, realising that he hadn't praised her for what she actually had done to find Nathan.

"Thank you" she said as she tightened her grip on his hand. He lifted her hand and kissed the back of her knuckles and then pulled her sleeve up when he saw bright red marks on her wrist and arm.

"It comes with the defence, I'm good though." She said softly and Nathan walked in.

"How are you doing?" He asked softly.

"Good, how about you?" She asked softly.

"I'm good, it's all stitched up, and I didn't do it myself." He said with a small smile.

"You're going to come out completely in bruises, Zoë." Horatio said softly as he looked at her.

"I know, it's okay though, I've had worse." She assured him with a smile. Nathan looked at her, concerned.

"Don't worry, both of you, bruises heal." She said with a smile.

"Yes, well, after what I saw this morning, the other guys will be worse off. What you did on the chair was crazy! You could have broken your neck." Nathan scolded.

"I've done it before, I can do it, I know what to do." She said, seeing the displeased look in his eyes.

"Nathan, don't worry. I've had training." She chuckled and he exhaled and nodded.

"Well, it's not something I'd like to witness again…" He said softly.

"I don't want you to witness it again." Zoë said softly.

"Why didn't you just shoot them?" Nathan questioned and Zoë looked up at him.

"Because I was enjoying the fight" she said quietly with a shy smile and Nathan's eyes widened.

"I'm sorry… you enjoyed that?" Nathan questioned, confused.

"A little, it got my adrenaline running." She said shyly. Nathan looked at her, shocked.

"Well, I guess that's you in your element, this is me in mine. Let's try to not cross paths again." He said softly and Zoë nodded with a chuckle and she and Horatio stood.

"You should probably take the day off, Nathan." She said softly and he smiled at her.

"I intend to. It's also my day off tomorrow, so I get to relax properly." He said with a smile.

"That sounds good, we do too." She said with a smile as she placed her hand on Horatio's back, then subtly moved it down to his ass. He looked round to her and raised his eyebrows and she gave him a smile.

"Nathan, you'll have to come with us for a little while, just so we can get a small statement." Zoë said softly and he gave them a nod.

"I thought as much, lead the way, Zoë." He said with a small smile. Zoë walked out slowly as Horatio followed her. They got back to the station and both Horatio and Zoë took Nathan's statement and then reviewed Matt's statement. They booked the criminals that were not wounded quickly and had them down in the cells while the others were under police watch at the hospital.

"We'll give you both a lift home. Thank you for co-operating and all those involved will be thrown away in prison and they won't be coming after either of you again. Matt you were involved because they thought it would throw us off Nathan's scent, or at least give them time when they were trying to interrogate him. But really don't worry, they're all going to be in prison. " Zoë said softly and they both gave her a smile. Horatio was still having difficulty telling them apart.

"Thank you Zoë." Nathan said softly and she gave him a smile.

"Come on then." She said as she began to walk out. Horatio gave them both a smile and caught up with Zoë with both Nathan and Matt following.

"Matt, where do you live?" Zoë questioned softly. He replied softly.

"Not far from Nathan then?" She asked and he shook his head. They climbed into Horatio's 4x4 Porsche and they drove off. They had a small conversation and arrived at Matt's house

"Thank you both, I really appreciate everything you've done for both Nathan and I." Matt said softly.

"Not a problem, Matt, if you have any problems, don't hesitate to call." She said as she handed him her card.

"Thank you." He said and then he got out of the car.

"To yours" she said with a sweet smile at Nathan as Horatio drove off again. He gave her a smile and she then turned back around and faced the front.

"How is your side feeling?" Nathan questioned softly. Zoë didn't reply so he sat forwards as Horatio glanced over to her.

"She's blacked out." Horatio exhaled as he reached over and placed his hand on her knee.

"She's not under stress though." Nathan said as he reached forward and took a hold of her wrist and took her pulse.

"She is, she was extremely agitated this morning as she knew they'd taken you." Horatio said softly. She lifted her head and then looked round to the both of them as Nathan withdrew his hand.

"Are you okay?" Horatio questioned and she gave him a small nod. He then withdrew his hand and gave her a small smile. They pulled into Nathan's road and she gave him a smile.

"I'm sorry about all of this but if you need anything, just give me a call, even if you just want to talk it through, okay? The same goes for your brother." She said softly and he gave her a kind smile.

"Thank you." He said smoothly.

"See you soon." She said with a small smile and he got out after thanking the both of them again. Horatio pulled away as Nathan walked up to his house and they drove home.

"Where's my car?" Zoë questioned softly.

"I had it dropped off home for you, the same with Nathan's." Horatio said softly and she gave him a small smile.

"Are you okay sweetheart?" Horatio questioned as he placed his hand back on her leg.

"Yeah, I'm good thank you." She said softly and Horatio gave her a small nod as he focussed back on the road. They arrived back home and Zoë quickly disappeared upstairs. Horatio walked through to the kitchen after looking at his watch and put something on in the oven. He heard Zoë come down and she walked into the kitchen with a shy smile.

"Come here beautiful." Horatio said softly and she stepped closer as she looked down at the floor.

"Sweetheart, don't worry. It's nothing to be ashamed about." He said softly as he tied up her joggers.

"Yeah, but I'm 28 and I can't tie anything up, it's not something to be proud about either." She replied as she stepped back.

"It doesn't matter sweetheart." Horatio said softly. She gave him a small smile and then looked down at the oven.

They sat on the sofa after they finished their dinner and cleared it away. Horatio put his arm around Zoë as she snuggled up close to him.

"Zoë, talk to me beautiful, what's bothering you?" Horatio asked delicately and she looked up at him. She looked back down at his top button and avoided eye contact.

"Zoë, talk to me." He said softly as he very gently began to rub her back.

"I don't know, I just feel stressed and I don't know why. Nathan is home and safe now so I don't know why I'm stressy." She said as she looked back up at him.

"Okay sweetheart, perhaps it's an early night for us tonight?" Horatio asked and Zoë nodded at him and gave him a small smile.

"Can we have a bath?" She questioned softly and Horatio looked round to her, a little confused.

"Of course you can have a bath." Horatio said softly.

"Yes, but I want you to join me." She said softly as she began to rub his thigh innocently as she glanced round to the TV.

"Of course" Horatio said softly and she gave him a smile.

"Thank you." She said softly and Horatio gave her a smile, then kissed her forehead. Zoë got up and ran a bath and Horatio was soon up after her after he put the dishwasher on and wiped the sides down. He walked up stairs and picked up a towel and then strolled into the bathroom as she turned the taps off. She turned around and gave him a small smile, he could see the stress in her eyes. '_Perhaps the bath will calm her down.'_ Horatio thought to himself. She took his towel and placed it on top of hers as he closed the door. She took her shirt off as Horatio took his off. She then fiddled with the strings on her joggers to untie them but her hands wouldn't do what she wanted them to. She leant on the sink and looked down, trying to keep it together and Horatio saw her coming undone at the seams and cautiously approached her.

"Hey, it's okay beautiful." Horatio said softly as he stood behind her and placed his arms around her and untied them for her. She took a deep breath and turned around to place her arms around him. She placed her head against his bare chest and began to relax. They pulled from the hug and continued to undress. Horatio took hold of Zoë's hand as she stepped up and then into the bath and he followed her in. He sat in the large oval bath and put his arms around Zoë and pulled her back. She relaxed back against his chest and rested her head on his shoulder. He kissed the side of her head.

"Better?" Horatio asked softly and she nodded with a content moan. He felt her relax more and nuzzled her hair. She placed her hands over his and a genuine smile tugged at her lips.

"You just make everything better." She mumbled as she closed her eyes. Horatio smiled and kissed her hair. She sat up and reached for a wash cloth and soap. She handed the soap back to Horatio as she began to wash her arms, underarms, chest and stomach. Horatio began to massage the soap into her back and she stopped what she was doing and concentrated on his delicate hands. He felt her relaxing and smiled and continued to massage her back. He then rinsed the soap off and placed a few light kisses on her back. He began kissing her scars and she stilled. '_Why is it so easy for him to do this to me? No-one has ever been able to do that.' _She thought to herself. '_It actually feels really good. He's absolutely the most incredible man on this Earth.'_ She thought to herself. She began to relax a little and he felt it.

"Okay?" Horatio asked softly with his lips making contact with her back.

"Yes, more than okay" she said smoothly. He leant back and pulled her back into him and then took the wash cloth out of her hand and began to massage the soap into her body, being careful of her side. Once he finished massaging the soap into her body, he rinsed the wash cloth out and placed it on the side and then ran his hands all over her body to get rid of the soap. She sat back up and then turned in the water and pulled the soap from the side and the wash cloth then began to massage the soap into his skin, looking into his beautiful blue eyes as she went. She eventually washed the soap off his skin and smiled at him. He turned her back around and gently pulled her back and wrapped his arms around her.

"Do you ever think of just moving away into some secluded village where nothing bad can happen?" She asked softly.

"It's entered my mind, but I know we'd both get a little bored if we didn't have our job to keep us occupied." Horatio said softly.

"I know what you mean, but why do bad things always happen to us and those around us? It's horrible." She mumbled as she interlocked her fingers with his.

"I don't know sweetheart." Horatio said softly as he nuzzled her hair again, taking in her scent.

"What would I do without you?" She asked softly as she turned her head and looked up at him.

"I ask the same question all the time." Horatio said smoothly and she placed a delicate kiss on his lips.

"How about we have an early, relaxing evening?" Horatio asked softly and Zoë nodded.

"I like the idea of that." She mumbled as she looked down at their feet in the bath.

"Do you need to wash your hair?" She asked softly.

"No, I did mine this morning." He replied.

"Same, shall we get out?" Zoë asked and she felt Horatio nod against the back of her head.

She sat forwards and began to stand but her legs hurt so she sat back down.

"Take it easy." Horatio said as he stood and then very gently helped her up and helped her to step out of the bath. They grabbed their towels and walked back through to the bedroom and gave each other a soft smile.

"Can I sleep in one of your shirts, please?" She asked as she turned to him with her pants and bra in her hand.

"Of course, beautiful, you don't have to ask me." Horatio said softly as he disappeared and pulled one of his shirts from the wardrobe, then handed it to her. She gave him a shy smile and then dropped the towel to her ankles as she pulled her underwear up and then began to put her bra on but her bruising had spread right up to the top of her back and she found it too painful to put it back on.

"Do you still have that arnica gel downstairs?" Horatio asked and she turned and nodded at him, a little confused.

"Wait here." He said softly as he walked out in his night pants and rushed downstairs and then back up with the gel. She gave him a small smile when she realised he'd gotten it for her bruising.

"I just want to know how I got it, how could I have such extensive bruising?" She asked as he put some gel in his hands and then began to rub it into her skin.

"It could have been where you fell, or they could have dropped you, there's a number possibilities." Horatio said softly as he looked at the bruised skin. He felt a pit in his stomach as he knew it would have never happened if he'd gone with her and ended the phone call.

"Perhaps you're going to have to let one of your Zoë-isms go and sleep without a bra?" He asked with a small smile. She let out a small chuckle and glanced back at him.

"Zoë-isms?" She asked with a genuine smile.

"Yes, you have a few of them." Horatio smiled sweetly at her and she chuckled a little more and relaxed a little. Horatio loved the sound of her laugh and smiled to himself as he rubbed the last bit of the gel into her shoulder.

"I think I will have to let one of my Zoë-isms go, for tonight anyway." She said with a smile. Horatio stepped back and then held his shirt up for her and she slunk it on and gave him a smile. She did the buttons up, leaving the top 2 open while Horatio washed his hands.

"May I ask why you want to sleep in my shirt tonight?" Horatio asked softly, suspecting that she was still feeling stressed.

"Because I love sleeping in your shirts and it makes me feel a little better." She said with a small smile.

"Are you still feeling stressed?" Horatio asked softly and she nodded at him.

"I don't know why though, Nathan's home and safe, you're safe, we're safe…" She said looking up at him.

"Perhaps you're just tired? You've had a long day." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded at him. They climbed into bed and sat up against the headboard as Zoë flicked the TV on. She moved closer to Horatio and leant against him as she put her head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her and then dropped his other hand to her thigh and began to stroke her skin. They soon settled down and got to sleep.

Horatio was woken very early by Zoë calling out his name and fidgeting in bed.

"It's okay, Zoë." Horatio said softly as he rolled onto his side and leant up on one of his elbows as he ran his other hand through her hair to wake her up. However, she didn't wake so Horatio did it again. She continued to call out for him as she lifted one of her arms and seemed to grab out into thin air.

"Zoë, wake up sweetheart." Horatio said as he placed his hand on her shoulder and shook her a little, seeing her distress escalate as she began to shout his name as tears began to fall from her eyes. She kicked the duvet off as her legs began to flail around.

"Zoë! Wake up." Horatio said as he sat up and wiped the tears from her eyes and placed his hands on both of her shoulders to shake her a little.

"Horatio! Horatio! No! Please, please Horatio!" She screamed as she sat straight up and immediately got out of bed.

"Horatio!" She screamed as she ran as quickly as she could across the room.

"Zoë!" Horatio shouted as she ran straight into the hard wall at full force and bounced back off and to the floor. Horatio jumped out of bed and flicked the lights on.

"Horatio! Horatio!" She yelled as she began to cry hysterically as she crossed her legs and put her head in her hands.

"Zoë, Zoë sweetheart, what's wrong?" Horatio asked frantically as he knelt on the floor beside her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

"Horatio?" She asked as she turned to look at him.

"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Horatio asked, extremely concerned. She looked up at him with tears falling from her eyes and reached out for him.

"Are you real?" She asked quietly.

"Yes, I'm real. What's the matter?" Horatio asked as he took hold of her hand as she reached out for him. She broke down into hysterical tears once more and then crawled over to him and put her arms around his neck as she leant up on her knees. Horatio sat back on the floor, feeling her desperateness to hold him and gently pulled her into his lap.

"It's okay, it's okay Zoë. It was a bad dream, it's not real." He whispered into her ear as she continued to cry into the side of his neck as her hands ran through his hair. He gently rubbed her back as he played with her hair.

"It was just a dream, it's okay." Horatio reassured her. She pulled away, still crying but not in the state she was just in.

"You were dead, you were killed in front of me." She said and then burst into hysterical tears again.

"It's okay, I'm here, I'm safe." Horatio said softly as he pulled her back in and continued to rub her back.

"You were dead, Horatio." She mumbled into his chest, traumatised and mortified that her imagination could do such a thing to her. Horatio kissed her forehead and wiped the tears from her cheeks and eyes as he pulled away a little. She looked up into his blue eyes and tried to fight the tears again.

"Shall we get back into bed?" Horatio asked delicately and she nodded at him and then wiped her eyes herself. He pushed her fringe out of the way and gave her a reassuring smile. They both got up and Horatio walked round to her side of the bed and sat her down.

"It's okay, it was just a bad dream." He reassured her once more and then urged her to lay down. He pulled the duvet up over her and then turned to walk around to the other side of the bed when she sprang out of bed again as he began to walk.

"Don't leave me, please don't leave me Horatio." She cried as she threw her arms around him.

"I'm not leaving you sweetheart, I was walking around the bed." He said softly as he turned in her arms.

"Don't leave me, please." She pleaded and held him tighter.

"I'm not leaving you, beautiful. I'll never leave you." He said as he placed his arms around her, feeling her need for reassurance. She pulled away and placed a loving kiss on his lips, he gave her a loving kiss back and then wiped her tears again.

"Come on, I'll get in first." Horatio said softly, knowing if he tried to walk around the bed again, the same situation would probably come around again. He crawled over to his side and then gently pulled her down and pulled the duvet up after she laid down. She looked round to him and then apologised.

"Don't worry, beautiful." He said as he ran a hand through her hair.

"Did you hurt yourself?" He asked and she shook her head.

"Okay, just try and get some sleep now, beautiful." He said softly and she nodded at him as she rolled over and placed one of her legs between his as she put her head on his shoulder and put her arm around him tightly. She was almost laying on him, but she still didn't feel close enough to him.

"Don't worry, beautiful." Horatio said softly, knowing she was scared and hurt, emotionally. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and put his arms around her, still sensing her need for his reassurance and his touch. He pulled her top up slightly and ran his fingertips over her back and felt her relax into his arms. He continued to run his fingers over her skin and eventually felt her relax further as she slipped into a peaceful sleep. He wasn't long after her.

He woke at 8am and glanced over at the alarm clock then back to Zoë who hadn't moved one bit. He relaxed back and put his arms around Zoë. He turned his head when she didn't stir when he moved beneath her. '_She'd usually always wake when I move or put my arms around her.'_ He thought to himself. '_Perhaps she's just in a deep sleep.'_ Horatio thought to himself.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Zoë, it's 8am" Horatio called softly as he moved one hand and threaded his fingers in her hair.

"Zoë?" He asked a little louder as he moved a little. He removed one of his hands from her side and lifted her arm that was draped over him and took her pulse. '_Strong and steady.'_ He thought to himself as he looked back round to her. He delicately lifted her head and tried to rouse her, but nothing seemed to work.

"Zoë? Zoë can you hear me?" He asked loudly but didn't get any response from her. He placed her head back down and then very gently rolled her off him and onto her back.

"Zoë, can you hear me?" Horatio called louder as he stroked her cheek and then looked into her eyes when he opened them.

'_Is she blacking out?_' He thought to himself when he saw her glassy eyes. He pulled the duvet back and off her and placed his hand against her thigh to see if she was hot, but she seemed just right. He placed his hand over her stomach and began to rub. He sat next to her for 5 minutes, trying to wake her, just hoping that it was a blackout but she didn't come round.

"Zoë, I'm calling Alexx." He said loudly as he leant over her and placed his hand on her face.

"Can you open your eyes, Zoë?" Horatio questioned but got nothing from her. He reached over to his bedside table and grabbed his phone and then rang for Alexx.

"Horatio? Is everything okay?" She asked softly when she saw him calling.

"Alexx, I'm sorry for calling at this time on a Sunday, but it's Zoë. She won't wake up, I don't know what to do." Horatio said quickly. He was trying to remain calm but Alexx could hear his frustration and fear on the phone.

"Okay Horatio, have you made sure her airways are clear?" She asked softly and Horatio moved her head and opened her mouth.

"Yes, she looks like she's breathing well and she has a good pulse." Horatio said to her.

"Okay, stay calm Horatio, keep an eye on her. I'm on my way over now." Alexx said smoothly, in hope of keeping him calm.

"Thank you" he said before they hung up. Horatio quickly jumped out of bed and pulled on some trousers and a shirt. He quickly walked over to one of Zoë's draws and pulled out a pair of shorts, he then rushed over to the bed and sat. He pulled the shorts up to her thighs and then lifted her hips and pulled them right up. He pulled the shirt back down.

"Zoë, can you hear me?" He asked again, but didn't get any response.

"Come on sweetheart. What's going on?" He asked her as he took hold of her hand. He sat there, trying to rouse her until there was a knock at the door 10 minutes later. He quickly got up and ran down the stairs and answered the door to Alexx.

"I'm sorry Alexx, she's still not waking." Horatio said softly.

"Okay Horatio, try to calm down for me honey. Is she upstairs?" Alexx asked and Horatio nodded then went upstairs with Alexx following. They walked into the bedroom and Zoë hadn't moved. Alexx placed her bag on the edge of the bed and placed her hand on Zoë's arm.

"Zoë, can you hear me honey?" She asked softly but didn't get a response. She then took her pulse and pulled her pen torch from her first aid bag that she brought along with her and leant over Zoë and checked her pupils.

"How long has she been like this?" Alexx asked softly as she looked round to Horatio.

"I woke at 8 and I've tried to wake her since." Horatio said as he watched Zoë lay there.

"Has anything happened that could have caused this?" Alexx asked softly.

"Er, she was stressed yesterday but didn't know why, last night she had a nightmare that terrified her, I finally got her back to sleep and she's not woken up since, she didn't move at all after I got her back to bed so she could have become unresponsive since then." Horatio said softly and Alexx nodded.

"I'm going to call Nathan, he knows more about her medical case than I do. I'm not sure what to do or what's going on." Alexx said softly and Horatio nodded at her and then watched her get up and walkout to the hall as she pulled her phone from her pocket. Horatio sat beside her talking to her as he took hold of her hand. Alexx walked back in a few minutes later and informed Horatio that Nathan was coming over. He nodded at her and then looked back down to Zoë.

"How was she after she had the nightmare? Could it have caused her more stress?" Alexx asked softly.

"It definitely caused her more stress, she didn't even let me more than a foot away from her. She was hysterical." Horatio said softly and Alexx nodded.

"Try not to worry, Horatio. This could just be a short temporary thing." Alexx said as she sat on the other side of the bed and made one hand into a fist and rubbed Zoë's sternum. Zoë moved a little but not much.

"At least she's responding to painful stimuli." Alexx said softly and Horatio swallowed.

"Is this stress related?" Horatio questioned.

"I don't know Horatio, I really couldn't tell you." Alexx said honestly and Horatio nodded a little and then looked back down to Zoë. They heard a knock at the door and Alexx quickly got up and walked down, leaving Horatio with Zoë. Horatio took hold of Zoë's hand again and listened to both Nathan and Alexx talk as they walked up the stairs.

"Hi Horatio" Nathan said softly and Horatio gave him a small smile.

"I'm sorry to disturb you at this time of the morning on your day off." He said softly and Nathan walked over to the bed.

"That's not a problem." Nathan said sweetly.

"Do you mind if I sit on the bed?" Nathan asked cautiously.

"No, of course not, do what you have to do." Horatio said softly as he let go of Zoë's hand. Nathan gave him a small smile and then looked down at Zoë.

"Zoë, can you hear me? It's Nathan, Zoë." Nathan questioned loudly as he opened her eyes. He backed off when he didn't get a response.

"She's reacting to deep pain stimulation." Alexx said softly and Nathan gave her a nod then pulled out a stethoscope and a pulse oximeter.

"Zoë, I'm just going to listen to your chest and put something on your finger." Nathan said softly as he placed the pulse oximeter on her finger and then moved up closer to her.

"I'm just undoing your shirt a little, Zoë." Nathan said loudly and undone the next two buttons and placed the end of the stethoscope against her skin under the shirt, keeping her covered. He pulled the stethoscope away and put it around his neck.

"Zoë, there's going to be a sharp prick on your finger." Nathan said as he pricked her finger with a small specialised needle and then brought a small device close and spotted some blood on the tip.

"What is that?" Horatio questioned.

"It's testing her blood sugar. This could be because her blood sugars are off." Nathan said softly.

"It's normal." Nathan said as he discarded of the pieces that needed discarding and put the rest of it away.

"Could it be an infection in her leg?" Alexx asked as Nathan pulled the small bandage off.

"She doesn't have a temperature, so I doubt it, but I'll check anyway." Nathan said softly and Alexx stepped back. Nathan looked at the small wound and inspected it closely.

"It looks good, no sign of infection." He said softly and then put another bandage on it.

"Zoë, I'm just going to pull your shirt up." Nathan said softly and then took hold of the bottom of her shirt.

"Can she hear us?" Horatio asked.

"I don't know, but I'm telling her what I'm doing in case." Nathan said softly and Horatio nodded at him. Nathan pulled her top up to her rips and exposed the large bruise on her side.

"It's gotten worse since I last checked it." Nathan said as he gently touched the surface of the bruise.

"How far up does the bruising go?" Nathan questioned, looking round to Horatio.

"Erm, up to her shoulder, it's gotten bigger." Horatio said softly and Nathan nodded as he placed his hands over her stomach and checked for internal bleeding. He shook his head and then placed his hands over her chest and tapped on two fingers and listened to her chest cavity. He then ran his hands through her hair, feeling her head and got to her forehead.

"Has she hit her head?" Nathan asked softly, feeling a small lump on the top of her forehead.

"I think she did last night, she ran straight into the wall." Horatio said softly and Nathan nodded and then looked into her eyes with the torch light again.

"Is that what has caused this?" Horatio panicked.

"I doubt it." Nathan said softly and Horatio exhaled a sigh of relief.

"I think we need to get her to hospital, I don't know what's going on. This could be some sort of seizure or something going on inside her head that I can't see." Nathan said softly and Horatio nodded at him. He rubbed on her sternum and she let out a small moan.

"That's more of a response than I got from her." Alexx said frantically, thinking she was coming round from her unconscious state.

"I'll call for an ambulance." Nathan said softly as he got up. Zoë let out another moan as he disturbed the bed. Nathan turned back and looked down at her and then kneeled back on the bed and rubbed her sternum again.

"Zoë can you hear me?" Nathan called and she let out a moan as he rubbed her sternum and moved her right arm. Nathan removed his hand from her chest and then checked her eyes again. Horatio took hold of her hand and watched Nathan check her eyes. He felt her lightly squeeze his hand.

"Nathan, she's squeezing my hand." Horatio said quietly and Nathan sat back and took hold of her left hand and gave her hand a squeeze.

"Zoë, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand for me, please." Nathan called loudly and she squeezed both of their hands. She turned her head to the right and exhaled a small moan.

"Horatio" she mumbled extremely quietly, they heard the desperateness in her voice.

"It's okay beautiful, it's Horatio, I'm here." He said softly and she took a bit of a deeper breath. Nathan took hold of her wrist and took her pulse.

"Zoë, I'm going to listen to your chest again, okay?" Nathan asked softly and she turned her head and opened her eyes and tried to focus on Nathan.

"It's Nathan, sweet." He said softly and she turned her head back to Horatio and glanced up at him.

"I'm going to unbutton a couple of buttons, okay?" She exhaled and gave him a small nod as she closed her eyes again. Horatio placed a hand on her leg and squeezed her hand has Nathan undid two more buttons on her shirt.

"It's a little cold, okay?" Nathan said and she let out a small moan. He placed the stethoscope against her skin and she let out another small moan. She raised her left hand and placed it over his.

"I need to listen sweet." Nathan said softly but she just gripped his hand. He tried to move his hand but as he did she sat up and pushed his arm away. She crossed her legs and looked down at her ankles as the shirt sat open. Nathan reached over to button her shirt up but she pushed his hands away before he could take hold of the shirt. Nathan looked up at Horatio and Horatio shuffled on the bed and moved closer to her.

"I'm going to do the shirt up, Zoë." Horatio said softly but she continued to look down at her ankles. Horatio reached over and took hold of the shirt but she brought both hands up and took hold of his wrists. He tried to do the buttons up but she pushed his wrists away.

"Zoë, how are you feeling?" Nathan questioned, he knew she wasn't right. She continued to look down at her ankles. Nathan placed his hand on her thigh and asked again.

"No, I don't want to." She said as she looked down at his hand and moved her leg as her breathing deepened.

"I don't want to." She repeated herself and Nathan removed his hand.

"Please don't do it to me. Only Horatio." She murmured.

"Zoë, do you want some water?" Alexx asked, and Zoë looked up and looked at Alexx. She lowered her eyebrows and looked at Alexx. She looked back down to her ankles and wrapped her arms around herself. Nathan glanced round to Alexx.

"Could you please get her some water." Nathan said softly and Alexx nodded then looked to Horatio who nodded at her. She looked up at the ceiling and tilted her head.

"Can you hear that?" She asked as she looked down at Horatio.

"Hear what, sweetheart?" Horatio asked, seeing her become a little more receptive of her surroundings.

"That high-pitched noise?" She asked.

"No sweetheart." Horatio said softly as she looked back up at the ceiling.

"Zoë, how are you feeling?" Nathan asked softly.

"Tired" she mumbled as she looked around up at the ceiling.

"Can you lay down for me please, Zoë?" Nathan asked softly.

"No, something's not right." She said softly. She swivelled on the bed and then stood up. She shook her head a little to try and focus.

"Zoë, do you know where you are?" Nathan asked as he stood.

"My house" she said as she began to walk out.

"Zoë, I need you to lie down." Nathan said as he tried to stop her but she moved past him.

"Zoë, listen to Nathan, please. Come and lay back down." Horatio said as he placed his hand on her back. She walked out of the room just as Alexx had walked back upstairs.

"Can you hear it?" She asked as she looked around the hall and down to the window at the end.

"No, you could be experiencing tinnitus though, Zoë. I need to check you over and get you to hospital." Nathan said softly as he placed his hand on her back.

"No, it's there, it's just very high-pitched." She said as she punched in the 2 digit number for the window. She opened it and listened.

"See, it's louder." She said as she stepped back and then closed the window.

"Skyler, lock the upstairs hall window." She said as she walked through the middle of them.

'_Is she talking to the house? Who's she talking to? Is she having a breakdown?'_ Nathan thought to himself. He turned around with Horatio and then heard a click at the window. Nathan glanced back as Horatio continued down the hall and towards Alexx.

"Alexx? What are you doing here?" She asked as she walked towards her. Alexx looked at her, confused. Zoë walked into her room as Alexx looked at Horatio and Nathan.

"Alexx, can you hear that?" She asked as she looked back up at the ceiling.

"No honey, perhaps you should sit down." Alexx asked as she walked in with Horatio and Nathan. She placed the glass on the side. Horatio walked up to Zoë and took hold of her shirt and quickly did the buttons up. Zoë looked down at his hands and then up at him. They could see her a lot more aware now, but all concerned by her state of mind.

"Skyler, volume 4, scan premises." She called loudly as she walked over to the TV and flicked it on. Both Nathan and Alexx looked at her confused.

"Scanning premises, Zoë" the loud voice replied and both Alexx and Nathan looked around the house, confused.

"Bring the security system up on the main bedroom TV." She said loudly and then watched the screen change.

"Security system" Horatio said softly as Nathan and Alexx looked to him. They watched Zoë tap on the screen.

"She's been trying to tell us something since 1.30am last night Horatio, she was on silent though." Zoë said as she looked to him and he exhaled and rubbed his chin.

"It's a touch screen as well as a TV?" Nathan questioned.

"Yes." Zoë said softly as she looked back up at the ceiling. Horatio was beginning to believe that she was hearing something now.

"Zoë, there is an unidentified object on the premises, a more detailed scan is being performed now."

"Show me the objects where-abouts." Zoë said and they watched a map of the house appear on the TV.

"Block all radio waves and signal within the premises." Zoë said loudly as she tapped the screen.

"Your phones won't work for now." Zoë said as she glanced back at Nathan and Alexx.

"Zoë, how are you feeling?" Nathan asked, thinking it was all still in her head.

"Good, I feel better." She said as she tapped once more on the screen.

"The sound has stopped now, it must be emitting a signal." She said softly.

"I knew it." She said as she stepped back and looked round to the balcony doors.

"Knew what?" Nathan asked as Horatio stepped up to the screen as Zoë backed off.

"That there is a device hidden" Horatio said as he studied the screen. Nathan and Alexx stepped forward to get a look at it. They heard Zoë run and all turned around and saw her exiting the room and heading on to the balcony.

"Zoë!" Horatio shouted as he turned fully and ran out after her, Nathan and Alexx quickly followed.

They saw her standing on the table and then step onto the balcony railing.

"Zoë, get down now." Horatio raised his voice.

"Zoë! You're not well! You cannot climb onto the roof!" Nathan raised his voice as Horatio pushed the table out of the way and went to grab her legs but she quickly pulled them up, away from him as she sat on the edge of the roof.

"I'm fine." She said as she turned and made it to her knees.

"Zoë, get down, please!" Horatio pleaded as he watched her disappear out of his line of sight. He stood on a chair and then onto the table.

"You are not getting up there as well." Alexx warned as Horatio watched Zoë climb up the roof.

"Zoë!" Horatio shouted. He watched her sit by the chimney and pull the gloves on as she glanced around. She picked something up and looked at it. Horatio stepped onto the balcony railing with one foot.

"Horatio, don't you dare climb up there, we can't be dealing with you both up there." Alexx warned, she knew he was itching to get up there. Horatio watched her head fall forward and knew she'd blacked out. It was as much as he could take, before Alexx could tell him off, he jumped up and pushed himself up onto the roof.

"Horatio!" Alexx shouted.

"She'll fall, she's blacked out!" Horatio yelled back as he rose slowly to his feet and then scurried up the roof and kneeled beside her as he took a hold of her to keep her still. Nathan then stood on the table.

"If you think you're getting up there, you've got another thing coming, I expect this from them, but you… nuh-uh, you're keeping your feet on the ground." Alexx warned Nathan. Nathan watched Zoë come back around and glance back at Horatio.

"What the hell are you doing up here?" She asked, raising her voice.

"Zoë, just get down now" Horatio said as he put his arm around her.

"Ouch" she yelped when he caught her bruise.

"I'm sorry beautiful, but please get down now." Horatio said softly as he loosened his grip on her.

"No, wait." She said as she inspected the small device.

"What is this?" She asked softly.

"I don't know, we'll get it back to the lab though." Horatio said softly, trying to get her off the roof as quickly as possible.

"Okay, do you have a bag on you?" She asked softly.

"No, I don't." Horatio said, getting stressed himself, fearing the thought of her falling.

"Calm down, Horatio." She said softly as she held the device in her left hand and then pulled the glove off her left hand and wrapped the device up in the glove and then pulled the right one off.

"Go carefully." She said to Horatio as she stood up.

"Go down backwards." She said as she turned and then began to slowly walked down, with her hands making contact with the tiles. Horatio followed her lead and walked down with her.

"Watch your step, Horatio." She said softly and then reached the edge of the roof. She stood and looked down at Nathan. Nathan got down off the table and moved it closer to the railing to help them down.

"Horatio, be careful, stay low." Zoë warned loudly as she placed the device in the pocket by her breast. She watched him stand on the roof.

"Stay low!" she raised her voice at him and he took a step and then slipped on a tile.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Horatio!" Zoë yelled as she stepped to the side and in front of him as he slipped. She placed her hands on his shoulders and forcefully pushed him back. He landed on the roof on his back and she lost her balance. She could feel herself falling off the edge of the roof and there was nothing she could do about it. Time warped and she felt it slow down. They all watched it happening in front of them and none of them could do anything about it.

"Zoë!" Horatio yelled as he sat up and tried to dive over towards her, but before he could, he saw her falling more. She turned and looked at the balcony. '_If I jump, I could catch the balcony, I'd rather that than falling to the concrete ground below.'_ She thought to herself as her thought process sped up due to the adrenaline. She jumped. '_I basically just pushed her off!'_ Horatio thought to himself.

"ZOE!" Horatio shouted as he dived over to the edge. He heard the clang of the metal railing on the balcony and he saw her holding onto the railing. He quickly scrambled over to the balcony and jumped down as Nathan grabbed both of Zoë's wrists. Horatio ran over to them and also grabbed her wrists. They watched the vacant expression cross her face as she let go of the railing. They felt her weight now that she had let go and then both hauled her up and over the railing. Horatio cradled her as he ran back into the bedroom and placed her on the bed. He stood back and ran a hand through his hair.

"I just pushed her off the roof…" Horatio mumbled to himself as he looked down at her. Alexx and Nathan rushed in and Nathan quickly placed his fingers on her neck to get her pulse. She blinked just as he withdrew his hand.

"Hey, it's okay, you've just blacked out." Nathan said softly as she sat up. She pulled the glove out of her pocket and then stood up to look at it.

"It looks like it was sending some sort of transmission." She said softly.

"I'm sorry Zoë." Horatio said softly and she gave him a smile.

"Don't worry, no harm done." She said with a sweet smile.

"Erm, why are you both here?" Zoë asked softly as she stood and looked at Alexx and Nathan.

"I couldn't wake you this morning so I called Alexx, we then called Nathan and you began to wake just as we were going to call an ambulance." Horatio said softly.

"Why wouldn't I wake?" She asked.

"I don't know, sweet. It was probably some extreme stress response after last night and yesterday, it could have been a seizure, but that's unlikely given your awareness now." Nathan said softly and Zoë looked at him then thought back to her nightmare. She swallowed and looked round to Horatio.

"It's okay." Horatio assured her.

"How are you really feeling, Zoë." Nathan asked softly.

"I feel fine, a tad stressed now, but fine otherwise." She said softly and Nathan nodded at her.

"In that case I don't think it's necessary for you to go to the hospital, but if you have any problems, call me or go straight to the hospital." He said softly and she gave him a nod and a small smile.

"I'll see you soon, take care, both of you and try not to get yourselves in trouble." Nathan said softly and they gave him a smile.

"Thank you, Nathan, sorry for getting you out on your day off." Horatio said softly.

"Not a problem, don't hesitate to call me if you need anything." He said softly and Horatio gave him a smile and nod.

"Thank you, Alexx. Sorry for dragging you away from your family." Horatio said softly.

"Not a problem, call if you need anything. Take it easy." She said softly, directing her last comment at Zoë.

"Wait a moment." Zoë said softly as she walked over to the TV and tapped it to wake it up.

"I just want to make sure it's safe before you both leave." She said softly and they nodded at her as she tapped a few more things.

"Skyler, show me outside the front." Zoë said softly and then the front of the house was shown.

"Highlight any unknown cars and heat signatures." She said softly and they watched the screen come alive with red lines, outlining a few things.

"Is that your car, Nathan?" Zoë questioned and he nodded at her as he looked at the car with an outline.

"Alexx, that's yours, isn't it?" Zoë questioned.

"Yes honey." She replied and Zoë nodded and then looked at the small heat signature across the street. '_It looks like a cat or small animal, that's fine.'_ She thought to herself.

"Everything is clear, you're safe to leave." She said softly as she double tapped the corner of the screen and it went blank. She gave them a smile and then walked out with them.

"I'm sorry for having to get you both out and thank you. Have a great day." Zoë said softly as she opened the door.

"Not a problem." They both said softly

"Don't tell anyone about the system in place." She said softly and they nodded at her and then left, both a little shocked at how the morning turned out.

'_She can talk to her house? She was unconscious and then on the roof collecting some device? What the hell? I can see why she wouldn't get bored of her life.'_ Nathan thought to himself.

"I'm sorry, Horatio." She said as she turned to him in the bedroom.

"Don't apologise, it's okay. I'm just glad you're okay and I'm terribly sorry for not listening to you on the roof, I just wanted you off there as soon as possible." Horatio said softly.

"It was an accident, it's okay. Anyway, no harm done and we've now got this device thing." She said softly and Horatio nodded as she took it out of her pocket.

"Someone must've put it up there last night as I didn't hear it's buzz yesterday, it was probably put up there early morning as that's when she tried to warn us. I'm going to keep her on low from now on, it may get a little annoying, but I think it's necessary if someone is trying to target us again." Zoë said softly as she studied it. Horatio nodded and she then took the batteries out.

"Skyler, allow signal and radio waves." She said softly.

"I'll have someone from the lab pick it up and check it." Horatio said softly and Zoë nodded and then sat on the bed.

"I'm sorry about last night, Horatio. I don't know what came over me." She said softly and Horatio looked round to her.

"There's no need to apologise, it's okay." Horatio said softly and then pulled his phone out after she gave him a nod.

There was a knock at the door and Zoë handed the device over to one of the CSI's and told him what to do with it.

"Thank you Miss Chambers, I'll let you know what I find." She gave him a nod and then closed the door after he walked away.

2 hours later her phone rang.

"Zoë Chambers" she said as she answered the phone.

"Hi Zoë, I've got the results for the device that you handed me, it seems as though it was recording everything it could, sound mainly and it was able to listen into your conversations. It was sending the signal to ghost email addresses around the world, I'm sorry but I couldn't track anyone down or get any more for you. No prints were found either." The CSI said softly.

"Okay, thank you." She said softly and then hung up and told Horatio the news.

"Who else can have a grudge against us?" She asked as she turned to Horatio.

"Only half of Miami" he mumbled back, trying to understand it.

"Don't forget half of New York too, I think I've still got a few 'fans' from there…" She said softly as she looked up at Horatio. Horatio looked up at her and sighed.

"Someone is hatching a plan, I guess we're going to have to find out what it is and stop it before it takes place." Zoë said softly and Horatio nodded. She then curled up next to him and placed her head on his shoulder, thinking about the possibilities of what could happen.

"Who were those people who actually took Nathan? I never found out." Zoë asked as she took hold of his hand.

"They weren't well known. They were a part of the drugs trade and we've made it difficult for them by putting some of their associates away, we've not dealt with them personally before though. They wanted to find the easiest way to take us out, mainly you as they've heard a lot about you from partners in New York." Horatio said softly as he placed with her fingers.

"But why take Nathan?" Zoë asked.

"Because they wanted to find out our medical records, they aren't easily accessible, especially yours and I don't have very many records so the easiest way to get information is to take the doctor that treats us, he not only knows about our medical records, but he knows details about us too. Don't worry sweetheart, they're behind bars." Horatio said softly.

"Yes, that may be so, but whoever put that device on the roof isn't and is quite clearly associated with the goings on with those criminals. What if they get Nathan again? What if they hurt you?" Zoë panicked.

"They won't get Nathan, I've put undercover surveillance on him for the time being and no-one is going to hurt me Zoë." Horatio assured her.

"But how do you know that? What if my dream comes true? Horatio, I'm scared." Zoë said as she sat up and looked at him and for the first time, he saw terror in her eyes as he's never seen it before. '_She's never admitted that she's afraid before, she must be terrified.'_ Horatio thought to himself.

"I promise you Zoë, no-one is going to hurt me, your dream was just a dream, nothing more. There's nothing to worry about beautiful, I'm not going anywhere." Horatio said as he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her lightly. She swallowed and nodded against his shoulder and Horatio knew she still wasn't convinced.

"You don't need to worry Zoë, I'm not going to get hurt, I promise you, I really do." Horatio said as he rubbed her back. She took a deep breath and then nodded as she pulled back a little and then kissed him lightly.

The End

**Thank you for reading & reviewing! Next story: Indelible Lapse**


End file.
